


Fireflies

by potatoscribbles



Category: Ensemble Stars! (Video Game)
Genre: M/M, ryuseitai zine
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-05
Updated: 2017-09-05
Packaged: 2018-12-24 05:03:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,439
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12005595
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/potatoscribbles/pseuds/potatoscribbles
Summary: Midori couldn’t understand his feelings toward Tetora until he basked under a thousand stars.





	Fireflies

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! potatoscribbles here again. This piece will be featured on the ryuseitai zine, please check them out on twitter @ryusei_zine! I am so happy and thankful they allowed me to be a part of it!

His image was blurry; that was Midori's first thought. In midst of flooding navy blue waves, a single person stood before him. Had it been his upperclassman who always at the fountain? That would have sufficed to clear his mind, but the boy turned around to face Midori, his red streaks sundered from the black like splattered paint. His light brown eyes burned like melted gold, glowing as Midori reached out to him. In the deepest crevices of his mind, he could draw the image of his face, his name lying at the tip of his tongue.

Midori woke up to the darkness of his room, the sun just peeking over the horizon. The gap between his eyebrows narrowed as he realized his arm reached out to the darkness that filled his room. The rhythm of his racing heart ceased as he covered his eyes with his arms. This dream had been becoming more frequent to him. A sigh escaped him as he turned over to his side, throwing the pillow over his head. Tetora Nagumo: he could take these two words and construct an image of someone who is rather loud and energetic, but if he were to describe his classmate in one word, it would be reliable. Yet, for some reason, he began to sparkle as if light had clung to his body and enveloped him in a shining, yellow aura. He closed his eyes, remembering his interaction with the other that day. He recalled the fire embers that lit the iron tiger’s eyes as if they were colored in sunny clouds of the south.

_“Hey Midori, are you not gonna get food at the cafeteria?”_ He glanced over at his classmate whose red streaks were reflected in the sun like a small campfire flame. Rubbing his eyes, the light never seemed to disappear, burning into the crevices of his brain. He turned away, focusing on his desk and ignoring the other. _“Hey now, your face is looking pretty pale. Did you not sleep well again? It’s been two weeks you know!”_ Tetora continued to talk to Midori, but to no avail. Determined to avoid the rush alone, he simply huffed a short breath, turning on his heel and heading out of the classroom.

Midori listened to his footsteps, a sigh slipping passed his lips. _“It’s been two weeks huh?”_ Two weeks of insomnia have chained him to the darkest of nights, but how long has Midori known it was to that karate captain he would flock to? When did it begin? These feelings that filled his chest; the more that he thought about them, the more they flurried inside him as if they were going to spill out. He got up from his desk, dragging his feet to the cafeteria. He didn’t feel that hungry, but for some reason, his body gravitated to the other.

Their voices were alluring; one was deep, but gentle like the sea while the other was full of zealous and vibrant like the sun. As if the whole cosmos became trapped in their gravitational pull, he found them. Tetora was beaming as he discussed with his upperclassman and Midori just couldn’t stand in the light of two supernovas that illuminated the room. He observed the way the upperclassman handed a small bag to the other, patting him on the head while the younger looked up in admiration. Midori couldn’t ignore the sound of his pounding heart that churned in his chest, at how it tore itself against his rib cage. Everything was chaos until Tetora’s eyes found his and in that moment, a feeling of tranquility washed over him. _“Ah…”_ he grumbled under his breath and the tension of his fist relaxed in the palm of his hand. In that moment, he knew what was bugging him, yet he was quick to reject the idea.

He turned away to make his escape, but a pressing weight against his body yanked him back. Red and black streams flowed in his peripheral, brushing his cheeks, as his sight caught Tetora holding onto him. His legs swung low, forward and back, as he barely touched the floor. _“Midori, just in time, I have to—”_

_“Sorry Tetora” he cut off, “But can you get off?”_ The weight of the other letting go was bittersweet as he turned around and observed the downcasted gaze of his, getting lost in translating the words that filled his throat. _“I didn’t mean anything by it. I’m just exhausted, I think. So I’ll just see you later, okay?”_

_“Ah, is that so?”_ Tetora responded, but the words scratched Midori’s eardrums with a dull drone. _“Alright! I’ll just catch you later then! Make sure you get something in your stomach!”_ His image grew smaller as he turned on his heel once more, running off to a light that blinded Midori’s eyes.

When was later? He replayed those words repeatedly in his mind, tearing each one by the syllable to try and make use of the syntax. He couldn’t talk to him during lecture and he left right after school to rest. Should he talk to him tomorrow or wait for the other to approach him? These thoughts towered over one another like unstable building blocks, but he couldn’t find a reason to confirm these feelings that filled his chest, gripping the inner linings of his heart with such pressure.

A knock from the front door tapped his eardrums, bringing him back to the present time. His body trudged to the door, his body freezing at the night air that whisked through his bones. Tetora stood before him, his hands stuffed into his rolled-up sweatpants, and a smile brimming cheek to cheek on his face. "Midori! Good evening! Let's go watch the stars tonight!"

He glowed still, underneath the lamplight that shadowed half of his face. Midori’s eyes fell like shooting stars as he outlined the details of the other's face, counting the strands of red that fluttered like cherry blossoms. The way the cold brushed his face as if a pink butterfly spread onto the apples of his cheeks, matching the color of his lips. Midori rubbed his eyes again, turning away from the other.

"Tetora … G'evening. What brings you here this late at night?" It was strange to see the young man stand before him with the sun was setting in the distance. Never had Tetora stayed out late, to his knowledge anyway, since he was an early riser. He was convinced that he wouldn't make it pass sun down. Yet, gazing at him now, he couldn’t deny he was excited to see him. "Weren't you the one who told me that staying up late will affect your height. Ah, but if it means I will stop growing, I suppose I don't mind the visit." Midori's gaze floated to the sky, unable to see a single cloud.

"I wanted to show you something, but it can be saved for another day" the older assured. "Going to bed early and waking up early is the best after all!"

"It's true I need to up early. My family are greengrocers after all and for some reason they always want me to help them with the produce before school." Tetora's face scrunched at Midori's typical ramble, causing the other to quickly finish his sentence. He grabbed a jacket from the coat stand beside him, zipping the front in one swoop. "But since you came all the way here, there would be no harm in taking time to look at the stars."

"Alright!" the older yelled with a puff in his chest. He grabbed Midori's hand, tugging him along and forcing him to close the door behind them. His heart rattled in his chest as the cold air slipped right through his body. With pressured breaths, the two ran like a pair of steamboats cutting the sea.

“Hey, where is this place, Tetora?” Midori groaned. He couldn’t keep up with the ball of energy, the light that he was constantly chasing seemed to move farther and farther away from his grasp.

“Don’t worry. We’re almost there!” A sigh escaped Midori’s lips, his thoughts of resentment becoming a stream of condensation that floated up to the sky. Before he could make another remark, Tetora stopped completely in front of him, causing a slight collision between the two. Midori’s eyes darted downwards, only to find Tetora looking back up at him with his finger to his mouth. His voiced wisped a hum as a grin hid behind his finger.

Taking a few steps into a field by the school, balls of light began to float from the grass. Midori’s eyes grew wide as these fireflies brightened their silhouette, allowing him to have the same yellow glow he associated Tetora with. The fireflies spun and danced, waltzing into Van Gogh’s Starry Night. The sight was mesmerizing that Midori had lost all sense of his surroundings, forgetting they were there for the stars. Laying in the grass, the two watched the balls of light fade in and out of the dark blanket of night. Midori believed it was the fireflies that flew up into the sky, painting their portraits of each other that made the universe the way it was. “Beautiful, right?” Tetora proclaimed.

Midori tore away from the universe that surrounded them before he gazed over at the other. As Tetora stared at the stars, getting lost in trying to find constellations, Midori’s eyes softened. His lips upturn into a slight smile. "Yeah, it is."

"It's pretty relaxing! I always try to get Taichou to go, but I can never stay up long enough to invite him out!" Midori raised a brow with his lips turned south. The silence allowed him to stare at the glow splattered into the darkness. It was a wonderful night beneath the thousand lights, yet within him, only darkness seemed to spill from his mouth.

“What is with you and that upperclassman?” he questioned suddenly. A scoff scratched his tongue as he tried to focus back on the stars that seemed to fade in front of him. “All you do is talk about him, but he can’t be that great if he were to compare me to Morisawa.” His voice caught the linings of this throat, eyes widened when he saw the light fade from Tetora’s eyes. “Ah, that is, what I mean is—” His voice trailed off, disappearing into nothing. Why was he trying so desperately to defend himself? He didn’t get it; he only could feel his heart churn within itself, crunching and gurgling into the cavern of his rib cage. It wasn't until Tetora snarled at Midori, his silence spoke multitudes for him.

“Kuro is a man among men! He is someone I strive to be! You too, Midori!” Tetora shouted as he pointed at the other, “You don’t use the qualities of your physical appearance to your advantage. You think your height is a burden and always look at it with shame,” he retracted his hand, his face grimaced with irritation. He turned away to gaze back at the stars. “But in actuality, that is a blessing to hold strength to! You don’t give yourself enough credit at how great you are!”

Midori’s lips thinned as he leaned back into the grass. “Is that so?” he sighed. Tetora’s eyes followed him as he composed himself, observing how his eyes found the stars. “I never thought of it like that. I am always perplexed by how people see me. Whether it is good or bad, I just always think ‘ah, that’s not how I really am.’ I am constantly thinking ‘perhaps it is better that they don’t know much about me’ or something like that. But with Tetora, I think ‘surely someone like him who is a serious hard worker and enthusiastic is better because he shines a whole lot brighter.’ So hearing this from you, is really different because I’m always chasing after you, I think.”

Tetora stared at Midori’s after his confession without words, but turned away to dig into his pocket once more, pulling out marbles that released faint glows. “Ah, that reminds me” he announced. As if they had fallen from the sky, he presented these balls of light as if he had caught a handful of stars. The glow illuminated the space between them. “They’re cool, right? Somehow, if you start collecting them in a jar, it’d be like a small group of mascots keeping you company at night.” Midori was often surrounded by darkness. As tall as he was, he could never seem to be amongst the stars he often reached. If he could, he wanted to collect the stars by placing them in his pocket in hopes they’ll keep him warm in this cold world.

“Thanks, Tetora” he managed to say, but his voice was so soft, it was simply a mumble to himself.

“Of course, that’s what friends are for!” He leaned over, turning his head to the other. “So did I get it right? You were bothered by something and needed the company?” Midori's eyes found Tetora’s, his pupils constricting in shock and getting lost in his own irises. “But who knew it turned into something like this!” Tetora joked. Midori turned away first, glancing down at his hands that began to fidget with each other. As he had grown over the year, it was only in this moment had he learned that stars are truly capable of exploding. He could see before him that human beings come from the elements that came from the stardust and among all the stardust that could spread across the universe, his formed right here, next to his. He scoffed at the sudden epiphany — no, — at the feelings that he had taken so long to realize exploded in him, creating a universe in his heart that cradled him with warmth.

“I love you” he mumbled. A gasp hitched in his throat as the words echoed repeatedly in his head like a damaged record. His heart sped up, trying to catch up with his mind that juggled the thoughts. His emotions flushed out of his body, flooding his cheeks and nose with a pink hue. Despite hoping that the three words were whisked into the air, never to be acknowledged and disappear in the blanket of the dark night, Tetora looked at him with sincere eyes. Without words, while giving him the same brimming smile, Midori believed that the distance between him and the ball of light he had so desperately tried to reach out to, had withered away. And for now: that was enough.


End file.
